Jan. 26.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 91

The authority to which requests for service or for the
taking of evidence are to be transmitted is the Supreme
Court of New Zealand, and communications should be
addressed to the Registrar of the Supreme Court at Wel-
lington in the English language.

The text of the said Convention is set out hereunder.

JOHN G. COBBE, Minister of Justice.

CONVENTION.

His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland, and the
British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, and the
President of the Portuguese Republic, being desirous to render
mutual assistance in the conduct of legal proceedings, in their
respective territories, in civil and commercial matters which
are being dealt with or which it is anticipated may be dealt
with by their respective judicial authorities, have resolved to
conclude a Convention for this purpose and have appointed as
their Plenipotentiaries :

His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland, and the
British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India—

For Great Britain and Northern Ireland :

The Right Honourable Arthur Henderson, M.P., His
Majesty’s Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs; and

The President of the Portuguese Republic :

His Excellency General Thomas Antonio Garcia Rosado,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the
Portuguese Republic in London ;

Who, having communicated their full powers, found in good
and due form, have agreed as follows :—

I.—PRELIMINARY.

Article 1.

(a) This Convention applies only to civil and commercial
matters, including non-contentious matters.

(b) In this Convention the words—

(1) “Territory of one (or of the other) High Contracting
Party” shall be interpreted as meaning at any time
any of the territories of such High Contracting Party
to which the Convention at that time applies ;

(2) “Persons” shall be deemed to mean individuals and
moral persons ;

(3) “Moral Persons” shall be deemed to mean partner-
ships, companies, societies, and other corporations ;

(4) “Subjects or citizens of a High Contracting Party”
shall be deemed to include “moral persons” con-
stituted and incorporated in accordance with the
laws of the territory of such High Contracting Party ;

(5) “A subject of one (or of the other) High Contracting
Party” shall in relation to His Majesty the King of
Great Britain, Ireland, and the British Dominions
beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, be deemed to
mean all subjects of His Majesty wherever domiciled.

II.—SERVICE OF JUDICIAL AND EXTRA-JUDICIAL DOCUMENTS.

Article 2.

When judicial or extra-judicial documents drawn up in the
territory of one of the High Contracting Parties are required
by a judicial authority situated therein to be served on persons
in the territory of the other High Contracting Party, such
documents may be served on the recipient, whatever his
nationality, in the manner provided in Article 3.

Article 3.

(a) A request for service shall be addressed by a Consular
Officer of the High Contracting Party from whose territory the
document to be served emanates to the competent authority
of the country where the document is to be served, requesting
such authority to cause the document to be served. The
request shall be sent by such Consular Officer to such authority.

(b) The request for service shall be drawn up in the language
of the country where service is to be effected. The request
for service shall state the names and descriptions of the parties,
the name, description, and address of the recipient, and the
nature of the document to be served, and shall enclose the
document to be served in duplicate.

(c) The document to be served shall either be drawn up in
the language of the country in which it is to be served, or be
accompanied by a translation in such language. Such transla-
tion shall be certified as correct by a Consular Officer of the
High Contracting Party from whose territory the document
emanates.

(d) Requests for service shall be addressed and sent—
In Portugal, to the President of the Court of Appeal in the
district of which the document is to be served ;
In England, to the Senior Master of the Supreme Court of
Judicature.

If the authority to whom a request for service has been sent
is not competent to execute it, such authority shall of his own
motion transmit the document to the competent authority of
his own country.

(e) Service shall be effected by the competent authority of
the country where the document is to be served, who shall
serve the document in the manner prescribed by the municipal
law of such country for the service of similar documents,
except that, if a wish for some special manner of service is
expressed in the request for service, such manner of service
shall be followed in so far as it is not incompatible with the
law of that country.

(f) The execution of the request for service duly made in
accordance with the preceding provisions of this Article shall
not be refused unless—

(1) The authenticity of the request for service is not esta-
blished; or

(2) The High Contracting Party in whose territory it is to
be effected considers that his sovereignty or safety
would be compromised thereby.

(g) The authority by whom the request for service is
executed shall furnish a certificate proving the service, or
explaining the reason which has prevented such service, and
setting forth the fact, the manner, and the date of such
service or attempted service, and shall send the said certificate
to the Consular Officer by whom the request for service was
made. The certificate of service or of attempted service shall
be placed on one of the duplicates or attached thereto.

Article 4.

(a) The provisions of Articles 2 and 3 in no way prejudice
the right to use in the territory of either High Contracting
Party, without any request to or intervention of the authori-
ties of the country where service is to be effected, any of the
following methods of service in connection with judicial or
extra-judicial documents drawn up in the territory of the
other High Contracting Party :—

(1) Service by a Consular Officer of the High Contracting
Party from whose territory the document emanates ;

(2) Service by an agent appointed for the purpose either
by the judicial authority by whom service of the
document is required or by the party on whose
application the document was issued ;

(3) Service by registered post, with notice of receipt ;

(4) Service by any other method which is not illegal under
the law existing at the time of service in the country
where it is to be effected.

(b) The methods of service referred to in (1) and (2) of para-
graph (a) of this Article may not be used for service on persons
who are subjects or citizens of the High Contracting Party, in
whose territory the documents are to be served, unless such
persons are willing to accept service ; and, when these methods
of service are employed, the documents to be served shall,
unless the recipient is a subject or citizen of the High Con-
tracting Party from whose territory the document to be
served emanates, either be drawn up in the language of the
country in which service is to be effected or accompanied by a
translation into such language certified as correct as pre-
scribed in Article 3 (c).

(c) It is understood that the validity of any service effected
by the use of any of the methods referred to in paragraph (a)
of this Article will remain a matter for the determination of
the respective Courts of the High Contracting Parties in
accordance with their law.

Article 5.

(a) In any case where documents have been served in
accordance with the provisions of Article 3, the High Con-
tracting Party, by whose Consular Officer the request for
service was addressed, shall pay to the other High Contracting
Party any charges and expenses which are payable under the
law of the country where the service is effected to the persons
incurred in effecting service in a special manner. These
charges and expenses shall not exceed such as are usually
allowed in the Courts of that country.

(b) Repayment of these charges and expenses shall be
claimed by the competent authority by whom the service
has been effected from the Consular Officer by whom the
request was addressed when sending to him the certificate
provided for in Article 3 (g).

(c) Except as provided above, no fees of any description
shall be payable by one High Contracting Party to the other
in respect of the service of any documents.

III.—TAKING OF EVIDENCE.

Article 6.

(a) When a judicial authority in the territory of one of the
High Contracting Parties requires that evidence should be